


Love in Unexpected Places

by Redthebookworm



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M, Mentions of other characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-14
Updated: 2017-08-05
Packaged: 2018-08-22 07:10:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8277230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Redthebookworm/pseuds/Redthebookworm
Summary: Lance accidentally walks in on his college roommate, Keith, having a private "conversation" with his passed parents. He then decides to invite Keith with him on his yearly trip to visit his family over the holidays. Lots of adventures ensue, and they eventually realize how much they love each other.





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Hey, guys! This is my first posted fic, and I hope you like it! I do not own the Voltron characters, sadly. I don’t own any of the songs that will appear in this story, and full credit goes to the creators. This was meant to be a one chapter thing, but then my fingers slipped, whoopsie daisies.

Lance had a hard night of studying at the library for all of his midterms later that day. He didn’t believe it was true when people said it would be a bad idea to wait until the last minute; he definitely did now. He didn’t understand how Pidge could do this every time, and still ace all of her tests. Then again, her mind was a steel trap when she really wanted to remember something. Lance wasn’t that lucky.  


The moon shone, and the stars glistened in the sky. They lit his way to the dorms, where his stubborn and annoying roommate was probably already asleep. 

The tall boy didn’t get along particularly well with the shorter one. They never had; not even when they were both scared freshmen who had no other people to talk to, or when they somehow got integrated into the same friend group. They had requested different people to room with every year, but it never seems to work.

Lance hated everything about Keith. The way his dark hair fell in his face, the way his violet eyes seemed to sparkle all the time, and his smirk that rarely graces his face when he says a good comeback. Lance definitely hated the way Keith’s body was toned, strong and lith. He hated the way the shorter one’s soft snores would fill their usually quiet dorm when he falls asleep while doing homework. What Lance absolutely loathed about that one was how he found he could never really sleep comfortably unless he heard Keith’s snores first; it was a sign that everything was okay. That all was right in the world. Even thinking about that made Lance’s stomach turn and his face scrunch up.

When Lance got into the shared dorm room, he noticed something strange. The lights were all off, but there were no soft snores breaking the silence. Instead, Keith was sitting in front of the big window in between their two beds with a blanket around his shoulders, and he was talking. 

“Yeah, so this year has been pretty rough on me. The homework is back breaking, and the tests just seem like they’re everyday now. I still have that one nuisance of a roommate I told you about before. I still think you would have liked him, Mom, but Dad wouldn’t. Lance can be a bit overbearing. You know what’s crazy though? He’s grown on me,” Lance couldn’t help but feel his ears perk up at this. ”It’s weird. Like when I ask about his day, I’m genuinely curious. I text him sometimes when he’s out just to make sure he’s okay.” Lance suddenly remembered a text Keith sent him earlier that all he responded with was a meme. “Sometimes I worry he won’t come back, like… Like what happened with you guys.” Lance’s heart fell all the way down to the floor when he heard this. “When he gets back, I act like I’m asleep, but I’m really not able to until he’s back home. Which reminds me, he’ll probably be home any moment now. He usually never stays out past 2:30am. I love you, guys. I hope you’re doing well up there.”

Lance barely heard the last few sentences, as he had slowly stepped out, closed the door, and silently locked it again. After a minute of him getting his bearings and ready to act like he hadn’t heard any of that, he quietly knocked on the door. 

“Who is it?” Keith’s tired voice rang out.

“Hey, it’s me. I forgot my keys.” Lance simply replied. He had done this countless times over the years.

A small sigh could barely be heard before Keith has opened the door for the taller boy, a look of disappointment in his eyes. 

“Again? I even reminded you this time!” Keith whisper yelled.

Lance held up his hands to show mercy,”I know, I know. I’m an idiot. I promise to not forget next time, okay? Don’t want to disrupt any more of your beauty sleep.”

Keith grumbled while he sleepily walked into the room, allowing Lance to follow. He closed and locked the door behind them, and watched as Keith burrowed himself in his blankets.

"Stop staring at me, it's creepy," He whispered with his eyes shut.

"I'm not staring! You wish I was, Pretty Boy," Lance retorted, a light blush appearing on his cheeks.

"Nuh... Uh..." Keith sleepily said, the heavy tiredness in his bones dragging him down.

Soft snores slowly began to fill the silence, and Lance couldn't help but smile.

“Goodnight, Keith.” Lance whispered before he felt himself slowly drifting off into the deep realms of sleep too.


	2. The Invitation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! I should be posting chapters every Friday or Saturday, depending on when I have time. I just got a job, so the schedule might mess with the story's; I'll keep you posted!

“Keith! All of my tests were absolute Hell today! I would be surprised if I passed even one of those little demon spawns.” Lance complained, throwing down his bag in dismay before collapsing onto his bed. 

“Well, that’s what you get for-”

“For pushing off all of my studying until the night before, yeah, I know. Allura made sure to give me an extra special lecture about that today.” Lance sighed, and looked at Keith, and remembered the night before.

“Hey, Keith?” 

Grey eyes rose up from their position at a book to show he was listening.

“Yeah?” He responded in a slightly annoyed tone. 

“Well, we’re on break now. We should do something!” 

Keith’s nose scrunched up in an oh so cute way, and some butterflies kicked up in Lance’s stomach.

“Why? Don’t you usually just go to your family’s house? You really should spend time with them.” Keith said finally, looking back down at his book. He attempted to look like he was reading, but he really just wanted the book to hide his small blush.

“Why not? You should really get out more, and you’re so skinny,” Lance threw a pillow at Keith’s tiny frame to emphasize his point,”My Abuela will definitely enjoy fattening you up a bit.”

Keith felt his eyebrow quirk up,”Your Abuela?”

“Yeah! You know, my Grandma!” Lance continued to talk about different things about his family excitedly, but Keith stopped listening. His mind was trying to process what Lance was saying.

“You want me to come with you to your family’s house?” Keith blurted out, interrupting Lance’s ramblings about his family. 

“Yeah, of course! Like I said, you need to get out more, and my family would be more than happy to meet you!” Lance was using big hand movements, and seemed so happy at the idea of Keith travelling with him.

“But… But, you don’t like me,” Keith stated dumbly, his mind still trying to wrap around everything.

Lance rolled his eyes,”Have I ever explicitly said that?”

“Well, no-”

“Exactly.” 

Keith sighed impatiently, and sat there for a second contemplating what he wanted to do.

“Sure. I’ll go with you.” Keith spoke before really thinking through his decision.

Lance sat straight up, and looked at Keith in disbelief,”Wait, really?”

The smaller boy put down his book, and awkwardly cleared his throat,”Yeah, I mean, you did say I have to get out more. Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I just didn’t expect you to actually say yes! Woohoo! You’re going to love it, let me go call my Mama to make sure it’s okay,” Lance was smiling so big when he left to step outside the dorm room to call his mother, Keith didn’t expect that level of excitement. 

Keith slowly laid down, and felt himself process everything. He was going to Lance’s house over break. Their winter break to be exact, the longest break of the year. He was going to Lance’s house. Over break. For three weeks. Keith was going to be surrounded by unfamiliar people in an unfamiliar environment. He felt anxiety slowly set over him thinking about it, and he instinctively reached over for his red lion plushie and held it. It was something his parents had given to him when he was younger, and he had never let go of it. The little thing was tattered, and lost its bright red color, but it’s his form of a security blanket. It helps when his anxiety got to him. Keith most definitely was going to bring this with him when he goes with Lance to his house. His forgotten anxiety settled over him again, and he slowly felt the impending doom of an anxiety attack when Lance burst into the room again with his exuberant and calming presence.

“My Mama is so excited to meet you! We should start packing soon, my house is about two hours from here. I hope you don’t mind the beach, we kinda live on one,” Lance said the last part sheepishly, and rubbed his neck. He always had felt awkward mentioning how he lived on the beach; peoples’ faces would often scrunch up, some would even sneer. They assumed he was a spoiled, rich kid after being told the fact, and would say something along the lines of “No, thanks” and never talk to him again.

“Oh, I don’t mind the beach,” Keith responded almost monotonically, attempting to process the new information while also trying to not have a panic attack. He was going into one of his coping mechanisms, where he just tries to shut down every emotion as to not get overwhelmed.

Lance’s excitement noticeably deflated, and he frowned.

“Do you not want to go since it’s on a beach? You don’t seem too excited, or fond of it.”

Keith glanced up to look into the Cuban boy’s blue eyes,”No, it’s not that, I promise. I’ll explain later. I’m really excited to go to your house,” Keith said in a more heartfelt tone. He caught himself by surprise, he was telling the truth.

Lance hesitantly smiled again, and allowed himself to ramble on happily about his family while they packed. Keith had never seen him so happy before.


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, you see, Lance may be suave on top. But he can become a blushing mess pretty fast.

“Keith! KEITH! It’s time to wake up, and get ready for our trip!”

Keith slowly opened his eyes to Lance’s overbearing voice, and smiling face. He had already done his lengthy morning routine, threw on some clothes, and packed all of his bags. 

“Mmm, five more minutes,” Keith responded sleepily, rolling over to face the wall. 

Lance grabbed the sleepy 20 year-old’s blankets, and yanked them off, so Keith would be exposed to the cold and have to get up.

Except, Keith wasn’t wearing a shirt. Or pants. He had kicked them off during the night.

Lance felt a blush quickly heat up his face and neck, and he dropped the blanket.

“KEITH, GET SOME CLOTHES ON!” Lance covered his eyes, and turned away. He felt a slight warmth travel somewhere else looking at Keith nearly naked.

“Why are you reacting like that? It’s not like you haven’t seen these parts before-”

“I AM A GENTLEMAN!” Lance yelled out, still covering his blushing face.

“You’re a strange person, Lance,” Keith mumbled while getting up and grabbing clothes to get dressed.

“Yeah, well, you’re strange for not freaking out too!” Lance moved his fingers so he could peek through them, and almost cried out in relief when he saw Keith had at least put pants on. However, seeing the shorter boy shirtless was still doing things to Lance.

“Why would I be freaking out?” Keith’s tone was still heavy with sleep and he almost got stuck pulling the shirt down over his head.

Actually, scratch that.

He did get stuck.

“Because you were practically naked! What if you were-”

“Hey, Lance? I don’t mean to interrupt your rant about me being more self conscious or whatever, but I’m stuck.”

Keith slowly turned around and Lance almost died right then. He had somehow turned the shirt in a way his head got stuck in the hole, and he couldn’t pull it down. His arms were flopping uselessly in the air since they were stuck in the sleeves.

Lance felt his spirit leave his body and he nearly collapsed to the ground from laughing so hard.

“Yes, ha ha, laugh it up! I got stuck, whoopdeedoo, now help me out before I start smacking you!” Keith was trying so hard to be threatening, but it wasn’t working. Lance howled in laughter even more at the image of Keith flaying his stuck arms around in an attempt to hit Lance.

“Alright, I’m calling Shiro or someone who will actually HELP ME!” Keith started to walk around the small dorm room, looking for his phone. He looked so lost and sad, and almost bumped into a wall trying to bend down enough for his hands to touch a surface in search of something that could get help. Campus security even crossed his mind for a millisecond.

“Okay, okay. I’m good now. I can help, I promise,” Lance’s laughter dulled down into giggles and he wiped at his eyes to get rid of the tears. He stood up straighter, his abs hurting from laughing so hard. 

Lance walked over to where Keith helplessly stood, and began to pull the shirt down. It was in that second, when Keith was able to straighten his back and Lance got a sight of his muscles that the reality of the situation hit me. 

And boy, did it hit him hard. The blush from earlier was back, maybe even worse than last time.

“What? No snarky comment about being my hero?” Keith looked at him expectantly.

“Uhh, not this time. Although you wish I was your hero!” Lance ended in an attempt to recover himself.

“Uh huh. Well, I packed my bags last night, I just need to get my bathroom stuff,” He pushed past Lance to the bathroom to grab his toiletries. 

“Right! Well, uh, whenever you get that stuff in one of your bags, we’ll be on our way!” Lance said excitedly.

When the bathroom door closed for a moment, he let out a big sigh. He had no idea how was going to survive this trip.


	4. The Car Ride

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys... I made Keith so, so painfully gay. And I'm not sorry. Also, I had to figure out a way to put "Hey man" in there, because come on, I HAD to put that in there! Haha, I hope you guys enjoy this next chapter! Disclaimer: I do not own any of the songs mentioned in this chapter. Also, if I could get some advice on how to correctly do my indents for my writing, I would appreciate it so hecking much omg.

After Keith had come out of the bathroom with his toiletries, the boys piled their stuff in Lance’s car and began the three hour drive to his beach house. 

Lance had plugged his phone into the aux and all of his obnoxious music blasted through the speakers. He seemed pretty content with it.

About 10 Katy Perry songs in a row followed up by Lady Gaga, Keith couldn’t take it anymore. Don’t get him wrong, he secretly enjoyed some Katy Perry or Lady Gaga every now and again, but he would not survive a three hour road trip listening to it.

He quickly unplugged the aux from Lance’s phone, and plugged his in. He began searching for the best song to play.

“What?” Lance said in an offended tone. “Is your music taste much better? I bet it’s all songs where the guys scream and you can’t even understand anything they say.”

Keith smiled sadly,”You got me all wrong, Lance.” He should have expected this kind of behavior. Why did he accept to come again? He didn’t have anything much better to do, and he didn’t think the stuff Lance said or did would get to him. He quietly sighed.

Lance glanced at him for a second, not liking how dim his voice sounded. He kinda wished he wasn’t driving, so he could really look at Keith’s face instead of the road.

“Hey man. Are you okay?” Lance’s voice was soft and his eyebrows furrowed down, he was really concerned about Keith. What did he mean Lance had him all wrong? Was he too assuming? Did he hurt Keith’s feelings without realizing it? Lance was really bad with that stuff. Sometimes he overstepped bounds or said something insensitive and not realize it. Who was the real Keith? How long until Lance actually sees what is underneath his shell? He’s probably only been himself around Shiro. Lance, without realizing it, then set a goal to get to really know Keith by the end of winter break. Learning his music taste was a good start.

There was no response to his question, instead Keith had clicked a song. After a second, a song began to play. It was… Mr. Brightside by The Killers?

Lance’s thinking face quickly dissolved into surprise.

“You like this band?!” Lance practically screeched in disbelief.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?” Keith suddenly felt weird. Was he not allowed to like this band? Was it broadcasting his homosexualness too much? Did Lance even know Keith was gay?

Lance mentally facepalmed himself. He was just thinking moments ago about how quick he jumped to conclusions, and here he is, assuming Keith wouldn’t like a band like this. He was actually overjoyed it wasn’t screaming and hard metal.

“No reason, just a bit of a surprise,” Lance nonchalantly said, attempting to recover himself. God, why does he always have to put his foot in his mouth?

They relapsed back into silence before an absolute perfect song came on.

“OH MY GOD, I LOVE THIS SONG! TURN IT UP!” Lance’s yelling caused Keith to jump, and he cowered against the passenger door while Lance began to turn the music up.

A few seconds later, Lance began singing and Keith prepared himself for the worst.

Surprisingly, Lance sounded pretty good. His voice was pleasant and not overbearing, or horribly out of key. Then again, Keith had a sneaking suspicion he would like Lance singing even if it wasn’t good.

“I said settle down, settle down, everything is fine

Take your eyes off the floor

She said no I’m not, no I’m not, no I’m not alright

I lost my head on the door

She’s a-a-a-antisocial, a-a-a-antisocial, a-a-a-antisocial

She’s an angel, yeah!

‘ I”M IN DEEP WITH THIS GIRL BUT SHE’S OUT OF HER MIND!”

Lance lost his tune when he started yelling at the chorus, but then he continued to sing normally after and he got really into it. He was dancing in his seat, although he made sure he was still driving safely, and even turned his head slightly to smirk and wink at Keith.

Keith felt his heart skip a beat when Lance did that, and a blush creep up his cheek. He quickly looked away from Lance, and stared out the window trying to forget how cute the taller boy in the driving seat was being. 

Instead, he watched the outside scenery pass by. The snow on the ground was white and pretty, except for the parts where it mixes with mud and turns into a weird brown mess. Cars whizzed by on the freeway, which inspired a game inside of Keith to count every dark blue car to keep his mind off of Lance. It wasn’t until a few seconds later that Keith realized they took an exit and there weren’t a lot of dark blue cars around anymore. Blue. Like Lance. Except Lance was a lighter blue, so beautiful and calming and… And… Keith’s train of thought immediately stopped when he saw the reflection of Lance dabbing to the beat of a song while they waited at a red stoplight. Keith didn’t even realize the song had ended and a new one had started.

“Dude, you have such a good taste in music!” Lance was happily jamming out to Closer by The Chainsmokers, mentally listing every song that came on so he would remember Keith’s favorite music.

“Haha, yeah. I just kinda discover this stuff from Shiro and on my own. Some of the music my mom actually showed me too,” The shorter boy spoke fondly of Shiro and his mother. He stared out at the cloudy sky, his dark eyes far away.

Lance suddenly remembers the night he overheard Keith, and saw him there in his big red blanket with lions all over it. It was draped over his shoulders and he looked so… Vulnerable. Lance wanted to ask about Keith’s mother, but decided that should be a conversation for another time.

Suddenly Maroon 5 came on, and Keith scrambled to change.

“Wait, dude! I love this band too!” Lance yelled in protest, stopping Keith a millisecond before he skipped the song.

“Are you sure?” He felt the blush creep into his face again. He didn’t even realize it left, but now was frustrated it was back. He was never like this usually, he could keep his cool when he wanted. Keith just settled that Lance always surprised him, so it wasn’t his fault really. 

“Of course!” Lance smiled brightly at Keith, and oh man. For a split second, Keith thought about how he would level an entire mountain to get Lance to smile like that again.


	5. Welcome to the House

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Note: I really appreciate you guys so much, I just wanted to tell everyone that. Even if you don’t leave kudos or a comment, just whoever reads this, I appreciate you for giving my fic the time of day. Thank you. <3 (P.S. - ngl, Keith’s music is inspired by my own, so if you anyone needs song recommendations, I gotchu. I listen to too much music, lmao.)

The car ride had gone by surprisingly quick. It consisted of some small talk and Lance thoroughly enjoying Keith’s music. Keith’s heart almost imploded each time Lance would do something cute, like smirk and wink at him. It was almost as though Lance knew what he was doing to him. 

Lance had been rocking out so hard, because he was a nervous wreck. His hands were shaking and occasionally his voice would squeak or crack when singing; his stomach was in knots and he was sweating. At that point, he couldn’t even tell exactly what was freaking him out. The fact Keith was meeting his family? The fact this is the first time he’s ever brought anyone except Hunk to his house? Seeing his mother after so long? The cold? The cold might bother Keith, that boy is so tiny that it must go right through him. Will Keith be comfortable? He does have a lot of muscle mass. Lance heated up at the thought of Keith’s really nice muscles. He immediately stopped that train of thought as best he could. There was so much Lance didn’t know and it was killing him. He didn’t know any better way to channel his energy than singing and seat dancing. 

The boys had talked here and there, but it was barely enough to calm the storm inside of Lance. He felt like something big was going to happen. He just didn’t know what. His mind ran through every possibility, and it felt like he swallowed a storm cloud. His composure must have broke by the time he got to the house, because he received a worrying look from his mullet haired friend.

“You doing okay? You seem nervous. Have you not seen your family in a while? Scared they saw your last grade report?” Keith smirked a little at that one.

“I got good grades this semester! I didn’t get just looks like you, Mullet Boy.”

“Hey!-”

Before Keith could retort, and probably kill Lance, a small figure came bounding out of the front door.

The sound of the creaky screen door opening and slamming shut actually drew Keith’s eyes to the big house and he finally  _ really _ looked at it.

It was at least a two story house, with lots of windows that glistened in the rare sunlight they were experiencing. The house was a deep, royal shade of blue that had faded out over time. The sound of crashing waves could be heard, and there was snow and sand everywhere. The cold sea breeze wafted over, and sliced through Keith’s clothes right to his bones. Instant goosebumps appeared on his skin and he involuntarily shivered. With the amount of muscle mass he has, he thought he would be fine and didn’t bring any heavy clothes. He was really going to pay the price for that one. He just hoped the old house had a heater.

His attention was pulled away from the house at the sound of squealing and more people coming out of the house. 

Lance was swinging around a tiny girl in a plaid winter dress, and two other kids of varying ages stood next to them waiting for their turns to get a hug. An older woman with hints of gray in her dark hair came out, and watched fondly on the porch before making her way over to Keith.

“Hello, it’s very nice to finally meet you. I’m Benita, his mother. Lance has told me so much about you!” Her warm smile gave Keith a sense of security, and he instantly felt a small pang of jealousy. Would his own mother smile as warmly as that?

Not letting himself dwell on that longer than necessary, he shook her hand. He instantly felt bad about the jealousy he had felt. He instead thought about how it was good Lance had a positive family life.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Mrs. McClain. Your home is beautiful,” he awkwardly rubbed his neck after she had released his hand.

“Please, call me Benita. And thank you! I can already tell you’re a nice boy, not at all the firecracker Lance described you to be.”

Keith’s eyebrows drew in,”Wha-”

“Mom, stop berating him! You’ll scare him away. Oh! And he’s also cute, I bet he’s a potential love interest!” A young girl’s voice rang out. Keith and Benita both looked at her, and watched as she giggled from embarrassing Lance. He probably thought his mom would listen to his little sister more than she would listen to him, so he thought to have her rely the message. Did he really think it was smart to leave it in the hands of a 9 year old?

“Hey! I told you not to add that last part!”


End file.
